


Touch

by Servena



Series: BoB Psychiatry AU [3]
Category: Band of Brothers
Genre: Alternate Universe - Mental Institution, Developing Relationship, Explicit Consent, First Kiss, Kissing, M/M, Mental Health Issues, Mental Institutions, Mute!Gene, Muteness, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Recovery, Touch-Starved, Touching, Trust, Trust Issues
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-29
Updated: 2019-09-29
Packaged: 2020-11-22 19:57:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,022
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20879840
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Servena/pseuds/Servena
Summary: “Gene? Can I touch you?”





	Touch

“Gene? Can I touch you?” Babe asks one afternoon while they’re out smoking on the bench. Weeks have passed since the day of their first meeting and the air has gotten warmer. The sky is a pale blue above their heads and in the flower beds next to the house the first green sprouts can already be seen. Spring is finally coming.

“Your hands”, he adds hurriedly at the look on Gene’s face, “just your hands.”

He isn’t quite sure what makes him ask now, except for the fact that he’s been thinking about it more than he has any right to. He’s been wanting to touch that pale skin since the moment they first met, calm those trembling fingers and smooth over the frown between Gene’s eyebrows. But he knows for a fact that Gene loathes to be touched, always keeping a safe distance to people to avoid any accidental contact and shying away from those who try to get closer. Babe hasn’t seen anyone touch him since he arrived here, not even one of the nurses. He wonders how long ago Gene was last touched. He wonders if Gene even remembers.

He’s already accepted that he isn’t getting any answer to his question when Gene nods, slowly, without looking at him. His breath catches in his throat and he almost chokes on the smoke of his cigarette.

“Are you sure?” He leans closer and he can see how wide Gene’s eyes are from here and the way he clasps his hands together to keep them from shaking, but he gets another small nod.

“Okay.” Babe breathes out, and this has got to be the feeling where you’re getting scared of your own bravery. He stomps out the cigarette in the grass and watches Gene do the same (they’ll pick them up later, Nurse LeMaire hates littering and none of them want to disappoint her). “We can stop any time, okay?”

He shifts closer on the bench and turns to face him, pulling up his legs in front of him. Gene mirrors him, his fingers now digging into the flesh close to his knee.

“Gene”, he says softly. “Look at me.”

Gene hesitates visibly, but then he lifts up his gaze. Not for the first time Babe marvels at the darkness of those eyes in such a pale face. “I’m not gonna hurt you, you know that, right?”

Another nod. He can hear Gene’s breath coming in quick, shallow gasps.

“Okay”, Babe whispers. Then he reaches out to lightly run his fingers over the back of Gene’s right hand. He half expects Gene to pull away and end this experiment right then and there, but he doesn’t, he just digs his fingertips deeper into his leg to the point that it has to hurt.

“Relax”, Babe mumbles. “Nothing’s gonna happen to you.”

He can hear Gene take a deep shuddering breath and a bit of the tension leaves his body.

Babe glances up at him. “Still okay?”

Gene nods, so Babe continues. He draws idle patterns on the back of Gene’s hand with his fingertips, marveling at the softness of the skin.

Babe is a touchy person, always has been. He touches people without thinking, shaking their hands or pulling them into a hug, throwing an arm over their shoulders, pulling them close. He never thought that such a small touch could hold this significance to him. But now he can feel his fingertips tingle and there’s an electric current running up his arm all the way to his heart, which is beating much too fast in chest. He can only imagine how overwhelming this has to feel for Gene.

Slowly he makes his way up Gene’s fingers. They’re cold to the touch and trembling slightly, but they have released their grip and are now gently resting on Gene’s leg. “Can you turn your hand around?” he asks without looking up. He’s slightly breathless.

Gene obeys slowly, presenting the vulnerable inner palm of his right hand to Babe. He flinches at the first touch, the skin being much more sensitive here than on the outside, but he doesn’t pull away.

“Still okay?”

Another nod.

“They’re so cold”, Babe says, and he leans forward without thinking to blow his warm breath into the palm. He can feel Gene shudder, but suddenly he isn’t sure whether that’s still fear or something else.

They stay like this for a while, simply holding hands. He can almost feel the tension slowly seep out of Gene’s body. On the other hand he can feel himself getting more and more excited simply at the fact that they’re holding hands, something he’d thought impossible just this morning.

“Gene?” he says suddenly. “Can I kiss you?” It’s a stupid question, he shouldn’t try to rush this now that Gene has finally calmed down, but he’s never been able to pace himself. He’s just about to say: “Sorry, I shouldn’t have asked. You can say no, I’ll understand”, when Gene nods.

Babe has never been so elated to receive a nod in his entire life.

It’s a quick kiss, positively chaste compared to Babe’s other experiences, except that it’s the most fantastic kiss he’s ever experienced. Their lips press together for a moment and he can feel how dry and chapped Gene’s are compared to his own and that should really be a turn-off, but it’s not. It’s over far too quickly and he’d really like to do that again, but he might need to catch his breath first.

“Was that okay?” Babe whispers. He’s still so close that he can feel Gene’s breath on his face.

Gene nods. His eyes are wide again, but his cheeks has become unusually flushed. It’s the most adorable thing Babe’s ever seen.

He’s still holding on to Gene’s hand, and now he can feel Gene’s fingers curl around his as well. “Would you like to do that again?”

This time Gene’s nod isn’t hesitant at all.

“Me, too.” Babe can feel the smile stretch his mouth so far that he’s got to look ridiculous, but he doesn’t have a care in the world.


End file.
